P O W E R R E L AT I O N S H I P B E T W E E N M E N A N D W O M E N I N T H E A L G E R I A N P R O V E R B S

Abstract

The present research work attempts to examine the use of proverbs in Tissemsilt speech community. Besides, it hopes to investigate the representation of men and women in the Algerian proverbs. More to the point, it endeavours to shed the light on gender stereotypes in proverbs in Tissemsilt speech community. In fact, proverbs play important part in the people‟s lives; they express truth about the Algerian society. Moreover, the current research aims at revealing how the image of men and women is painted through investigating the attitude of people towards positive and negative portrayals of men and women of Tissemsilt speech community. To attain this, three data collection tools were used namely a written questionnaire administered to younger generation who belong to Tissemsilt speech community, which is about gender stereotypes in proverbs, the second is interview directed to elders, and the third one is the content analysis of set of proverbs to uncover stereotypes represented about both genders. The informants are Algerian intellectuals of different ages and sexes. After the qualitative and quantitative analyses. The results showed that Algerian people consider these stereotypes as a part of reality and they still engraved in the Algerian minds. Furthermore, the data have indicated that men and women are represented differently in the Algerian proverbs in which women, on the one hand, are stereotypically portrayed more negatively way, yet some social roles- like mother-are respected in proverbs, men, on the other hand, are portrayed in very positive way. According to the respondents, women are always presented as weak, evil, and dependent, but men are expected to be good and powerful. Finally, the study finds out that most Algerian proverbs put women in secondary position (subordinate), while they put men higher position related to the dominance.